Whenever I’m asked which city I’d most like to inhabit I always say Paris. It’s just because I have a sort of obsessive attraction to everything French, even though my knowledge of the language remains sparse after years of school French (I’d probably be a fish out of water, a la Dave Sedaris in “Me Talk Pretty One Day”. As far as being a lover of all things artistic (heh) goes, though, I’d probably choose New York in a heartbeat. Jose was only recently fêting it (well, the Met actually), and with good reason.
As far as cinema goes Woody Allen seems to have the monopoly on the city. It probably makes sense because he exudes that sense of zany neuroses that people tend to think of the city with. Still, it’s not Woody who I turn to when I hear the name of the city – I turn to Liza, with Z, first. It’s not just because I’m a lover of Scorsese, I really do think that New York, New York is one of the best films of the seventies (and one of the best films to not receive an Oscar nomination). It has its moments of less than perfect scenes, but it’s an ultimately rewarding experience. For me, its themes effectively evoke that gritty realness tied with the sort of magical sheen that best encapsulates the city – larger than life, really. Plus, the film’s most iconic scene – as far as I’m concerned – is about a budding Broadway showgirl. And what else is as indicative of New York as The Great White Way
It’s not just cinema, though. New York is as much a location as it is a character in two of the greatest comedies of the nineties (and all time, probably) Friends and Sex and the City. Sex and the City in particular depends on that attractive but sometimes exasperating hubbub of the city (which is probably why the excursions away from it tend to fall flat). In truth, I can’t say I’d be interested in seeing New York for the tourists’ attractions. It’s like that Friends episode where Joey didn’t even know that the Met was a museum and not the singular of the Mets – the baseball team. If I do end up in New York I’d probably divide my time between the cinema and the theatre, or maybe I’d make time to do a Jane Fonda and go barefoot in the park.
I don’t know. It’s a sort of perfect tourist’s paradise. I’m not a tourist at heart, but I still want to go.
Any New Yorkers reading?
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